Construction activity is likely to increase in the UAE during the last quarter of this year, an expert from Deloitte Middle East said.

Cynthia Corby, audit partner and Middle East construction industry leader at Deloitte Middle East, said the sector could get busier in Q4.

Corby's views were revealed during a session she delivered at Construction Week: Leaders in Construction UAE Summit 2017, recently held in Dubai.

Projects worth approximately $23bn (AED84.5bn) have been awarded in the UAE thus far, Corby said.

The UAE's is expected to be the best performing economy in 2017/18, Corby's presentation showed.

She continued: "Contracts worth $34.5bn (AED126.7bn) are expected in 2017, so we are anticipating lots of activity in the last quarter of this year, and [according to] some of my contacts, there seems to be a lot of optimism in the market."

The value of projects awarded in the UAE in 2016 was $42.3bn (AED155.3bn), significantly higher than this year’s anticipated figures, Corby pointed out.

Corby's views, and coverage of all other panels held as part of Construction Week: Leaders in Construction UAE Summit 2017, will be published in Construction Week #669 (23 September, 2017).